Today’s news of the successful recovery efforts after a series of natural disasters hit Slovenia’s forests over the last five years – an ice storm, bark beetle infestation and strong winds – sent us back to the archives to take another look at the first of those events.
The storm swept Slovenia in late January, 2014, and for ten days much of the country was coated in thick ice. This produced some incredible pictures and videos, but also devastated the forests. A total of 6,000,000 m3 of wood had to be cut down – more than the usual yearly harvest – with half as much again left to rot.
However, as we head deeper into the winter meteorologists say there’s little reason to fear a repeat performance, since the ice storm of 2014 is seen as a once in a century event.
